General Dynamics Co. (GD) Given Consensus Rating of “Hold” by Brokerages

Shares of General Dynamics Co. (NYSE:GD) have received an average rating of “Hold” from the nineteen brokerages that are presently covering the stock, Marketbeat reports. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a sell recommendation, five have given a hold recommendation and eleven have assigned a buy recommendation to the company. The average 1 year price target among analysts that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is $228.71.

GD has been the subject of several recent research reports. UBS Group initiated coverage on General Dynamics in a report on Wednesday, August 15th. They set a “neutral” rating and a $210.00 price target for the company. Argus decreased their price target on General Dynamics from $250.00 to $200.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Friday, October 26th. Drexel Hamilton reiterated a “buy” rating and set a $230.00 price target on shares of General Dynamics in a report on Thursday, August 16th. Stifel Nicolaus decreased their price target on General Dynamics from $210.00 to $200.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a report on Friday, October 26th. Finally, Citigroup decreased their price target on General Dynamics from $210.00 to $195.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, October 25th.

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In other General Dynamics news, insider John Patrick Casey sold 22,500 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Monday, October 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $193.28, for a total value of $4,348,800.00. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 118,555 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $22,914,310.40. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, Director Mark Malcolm acquired 3,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Friday, October 26th. The stock was acquired at an average cost of $169.87 per share, for a total transaction of $509,610.00. Following the transaction, the director now owns 4,455 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $756,770.85. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. 6.70% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

A number of hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of GD. Morgan Stanley lifted its position in shares of General Dynamics by 1.7% during the 3rd quarter. Morgan Stanley now owns 916,988 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $187,727,000 after buying an additional 15,746 shares during the last quarter. Legal & General Group Plc lifted its position in shares of General Dynamics by 1.2% during the 3rd quarter. Legal & General Group Plc now owns 1,076,274 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $220,296,000 after buying an additional 13,119 shares during the last quarter. Meristem Family Wealth LLC purchased a new position in shares of General Dynamics during the 3rd quarter valued at $214,000. Sawgrass Asset Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of General Dynamics during the 3rd quarter valued at $208,000. Finally, B. Riley Wealth Management Inc. purchased a new position in shares of General Dynamics during the 3rd quarter valued at $437,000. 85.21% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Shares of NYSE GD traded up $2.13 during midday trading on Friday, hitting $178.88. 15,028 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,895,613. The company has a market cap of $52.34 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 17.98, a P/E/G ratio of 1.45 and a beta of 0.98. General Dynamics has a one year low of $164.76 and a one year high of $230.00. The company has a quick ratio of 0.87, a current ratio of 1.27 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.89.

General Dynamics (NYSE:GD) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, October 24th. The aerospace company reported $2.89 EPS for the quarter, beating the Thomson Reuters’ consensus estimate of $2.76 by $0.13. The firm had revenue of $9.09 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $9.41 billion. General Dynamics had a return on equity of 27.22% and a net margin of 9.01%. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 20.0% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $2.52 earnings per share. On average, equities research analysts anticipate that General Dynamics will post 11.3 earnings per share for the current year.

About General Dynamics

General Dynamics Corporation operates as an aerospace and defense company worldwide. It operates through four business groups: Aerospace; Combat Systems; Information Systems and Technology; and Marine Systems. The Aerospace group designs, develops, manufactures, service and supports business-jet aircraft; and provides aircraft services, such as maintenance, aircraft management, charter, fixed-base operational, and staffing services.